By
Diana Hsieh

The U.S. Senate is expected to vote on a sweeping overhaul of the food safety laws, very soon - possibly as early as April 13. As it is currently written, the bill, S. 510, would actually make our food less safe. S. 510 would strengthen the forces that have led to the consolidation of our food supply in the hands of a few industrial food producers, while harming small producers who give consumers the choice to buy fresh, healthy, local foods.

Please contact your Senators NOW to urge them to amend or oppose the bill! Contact information and talking points are below.

Congress needs to solve the real problems - the centralized food distribution system and imported foods - and not regulate our local food sources out of business. S. 510 is a "one-size-fits-all" approach that will unnecessarily burden both farmers and small-scale food processors, ultimately depriving consumers of the choice to buy from producers they know and trust.

For the reasons that I detailed in my post on Individual Rights Versus Food Regulations, I cannot support WAPF's calls to regulate some producers but leave others free. Everyone should be free to produce, trade, and consume as they see fit. Nonetheless, I share WAPF's concern for the heavy burden of such legislation on smaller farmers and producers: most won't have the economies of scale required to work profitably under these crushing and nonsensical government controls. Plus, even understanding the basic requirements of the law would be an unjust burden.

Last night, I sent my two Colorado Senators a letter stating my opposition to the bill:

Dear Senator [Bennet/Udall] --

I am completely opposed to regulations in agriculture and food production, including S. 510. Only free market reforms -- not more government controls and welfare -- would be consistent with the principles of individual rights.

The government has already created an obesity epidemic by pushing its low-fat, whole-grain dogma. Now you want to do more damage to our health. No thanks!

How about you let individuals make up their own minds about what to eat, who to buy from, and at what price?

How about you treat Americans like the adults capable of managing their own lives that they are -- rather than like incompetent children?

Why is that too much to ask?

-- Diana Hsieh

(I was a bit testy because these two *@^!#^ already voted for ObamaCare.)

If you care about protecting freedom in agriculture and food production -- if you want food producers and food consumers to be able to trade as they see fit according to their best judgment, free from interference from the nannies in Washington -- please write a letter to your senators opposing S. 510!

The U.S. Senate is expected to vote on a sweeping overhaul of the food safety laws, very soon - possibly as early as April 13. As it is currently written, the bill, S. 510, would actually make our food less safe. S. 510 would strengthen the forces that have led to the consolidation of our food supply in the hands of a few industrial food producers, while harming small producers who give consumers the choice to buy fresh, healthy, local foods.

Please contact your Senators NOW to urge them to amend or oppose the bill! Contact information and talking points are below.

Congress needs to solve the real problems - the centralized food distribution system and imported foods - and not regulate our local food sources out of business. S. 510 is a "one-size-fits-all" approach that will unnecessarily burden both farmers and small-scale food processors, ultimately depriving consumers of the choice to buy from producers they know and trust.

For the reasons that I detailed in my post on Individual Rights Versus Food Regulations, I cannot support WAPF's calls to regulate some producers but leave others free. Everyone should be free to produce, trade, and consume as they see fit. Nonetheless, I share WAPF's concern for the heavy burden of such legislation on smaller farmers and producers: most won't have the economies of scale required to work profitably under these crushing and nonsensical government controls. Plus, even understanding the basic requirements of the law would be an unjust burden.

Last night, I sent my two Colorado Senators a letter stating my opposition to the bill:

Dear Senator [Bennet/Udall] --

I am completely opposed to regulations in agriculture and food production, including S. 510. Only free market reforms -- not more government controls and welfare -- would be consistent with the principles of individual rights.

The government has already created an obesity epidemic by pushing its low-fat, whole-grain dogma. Now you want to do more damage to our health. No thanks!

How about you let individuals make up their own minds about what to eat, who to buy from, and at what price?

How about you treat Americans like the adults capable of managing their own lives that they are -- rather than like incompetent children?

Why is that too much to ask?

-- Diana Hsieh

(I was a bit testy because these two *@^!#^ already voted for ObamaCare.)

If you care about protecting freedom in agriculture and food production -- if you want food producers and food consumers to be able to trade as they see fit according to their best judgment, free from interference from the nannies in Washington -- please write a letter to your senators opposing S. 510!